Technologies of Social Change: Rhizomatic Communication and Distributed Direct Action across the Occupy Movement

• In Event: 239 - Section on Communication and Information Technologies Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Section on Communication and Information Technologies Roundtables (one-hour). Table 01. Digital Activism: From Occupy to Gezi

Abstract

Scholars such as Theda Skocpol (Francescani 2012) and Matthew Smith (2012) claim that Occupy protesters have failed to tactically innovate or gain political power. I challenge this assertion by illustrating how Occupy encampments were a democratic laboratory for experimenting with new organizational and tactical formations, while also refining a unique style of rhizomatic communication that fosters distributed direct action. Charting the early history of actors and groups that launched the camp at Zuccotti Park on September 17, 2011, shows how organizers were able to change framing strategies and incorporate new technologies into their repertoire of action, which led to the successful occupation of Zuccotti Park for over sixty days. These groups relied on social media, including making participatory websites on Tumblr, uploading videos to YouTube, networking on Facebook, issuing links and action plans on Twitter, holding massive conference calls, as well as broadcasting every day on LiveStream, in order to reach new audiences and marshal resources. Significantly for the Occupy movement, access to technologies of social change has increased the flow of information and dissemination of tactics across protests sites, while also refined a rhizomatic organizational model whereby keywords and search engines facilitate the spread of information from many to many.

Author

• Joan M. Donovan, University of California-San Diego